I knew I was close. I’d been peeking online on Jogtracker.com for my total miles walked. It was taking forever, like trying to find the exact time when the odometer numbers on the old cars would all flip at once.

Then I busied myself with my office move. Today I took a peak. Sometime in the last two weeks, I made my milestone. I hit the 2,000 mile mark on my walking since December 2012.

You may recall that last year, when I was exactly at the 1000 mile mark, I found myself accidentally parading around the neighborhood in my underwear, after experiencing a hot flash, taking off my shirt, and walking a good block or two before discovering that I had not put on a sports bra that day. I was walking around in a regular black bra, purchased at Target. Oops.

This year, I passed 2,000 miles without really thinking of it. This is comforting in a way because things we do that we don’t think about are habits. I was trying to build regular exercise into my routine. And I have, I walk habitually. But this also leaves me every so slightly on guard. Without mindfully and actively engaging in exercise, I run the risk of getting out of the habit. Habits, unless they involve addiction, need a little nudge to keep them going.

So today I take a pause and reflect on 2,000 miles walked in a little over two years. It’s a lot of time that I took for myself to take care of myself over the past two years. I can honestly reflect on how I feel and how I live my life and conclude that this has been time very well spent. Not to mention the fun I’ve had taking photos, the cats I’ve met along the way, the increased time with my husband when e joins my walks, and the most excellent coffees I’ve sipped on my journeys.

Thanks so much, Beth. It is an excellent exercise and I have been so surprised that it is not that hard to do where I live, year round. (I’m not sure I could walk outdoors during Chicago winters, though. Actually, having experienced -45 degrees with windchill there while on a job interview, I know that I could not.)

George Lakoff has retired as Distinguished Professor of Cognitive Science and Linguistics at the University of California at Berkeley. He is now Director of the Center for the Neural Mind & Society (cnms.berkeley.edu).